Friends of Princess Diana label The Crown ‘entitled’ and ‘insensitive’ as actors spotted recreating her final moments

As the release of The Crown's fifth season grows ever-nearer, backlash against the Netflix show continues to mount

Princess Diana portrayal in The Crown
(Image credit: Netflix and Jayne Fincher/Princess Diana Archive/Getty Images/Future)

Friends of the late Princess Diana have spoken out against Netflix show The Crown ahead of its season five release, calling the show's creators ‘entitled’ and ‘insensitive’ for recreating Princess Diana's last living moments

Netflix's royal drama, The Crown is full of scandal, but as the fifth season gets ready to air, that scandal appears to be slipping off screen and into real life. The latest in a series of backlash, close friends of the late Princess Diana have spoken out against the show as Netflix's plans to depict the moments leading up to her death have been revealed.

The criticism came after reports that the show had been filming scenes where Elizabeth Debicki, the actress who plays the late Diana, could be seen in a black Mercedes just 100 yards from the Alma tunnel, Paris - where Princess Diana was tragically killed in a car accident in 1997. 

The new trailer for The Crown's upcoming fifth series, which will be released on the 9th of November 2022, shows yet more of Princess Diana's most vulnerable moments being recreated. The trailer shows that the upcoming season plans to focus on the breakdown of the late princess' and the now King Charles' marriage, including Diana's infamous and highly controversial Panorama interview.

The Crown season five

(Image credit: Netflix)

While Netflix bosses have confirmed that the "exact moment" of the fatal crash will not be shown on screen, those close to the late princess still see it as a violation. 

Diana's astrologer, Debbie Frank, feels that the release of the Netflix series will be 'terrible' for Prince William and Prince Harry to process, dubbing the show's creators as 'insensitive' and 'entitled.'

She told the Mail, "It's obviously terrible for Diana's children to have to see that again. It's insensitive. I feel Diana's death and the crash was the biggest shock our generation. It had such a huge impact across the national psyche.

“I guess the makers of The Crown feel they are entitled to show a re-enactment of scenes leading up to her death and that it has dramatic impact. But relatives would think otherwise."

Princess Diana

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Debbie's comments follow those of another close friend of Diana's, who claimed that the mere existence of the Netflix series forced Prince William and Harry to relive "the most painful time" of their lives.

Simone Simmons told The Sun, "These are cruel, sadistic and wicked people to recreate these moments. They are the lowest of the low. They are rewriting history as they go along and that’s what makes me very angry."

Simone went on to ask why "these callous, insensitive people" would ever feel the need to recreate "that horrible day" on screen.

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Charlie Elizabeth Culverhouse
Royal News and Entertainment writer

Charlie Elizabeth Culverhouse is royal news and entertainment writer for Goodto.com. She began her freelance journalism career after graduating from Nottingham Trent University with an MA in Magazine Journalism, receiving an NCTJ diploma, and earning a First Class BA (Hons) in Journalism at the British and Irish Modern Music Institute. She has also worked with BBC Good Food and The Independent.